Lindsey D.'s ramblings on the moving image!

Modern Movies: February 2017

Welcome to this month’s Modern Movies, featuring mini-reviews of the films I watched in February which were released after 1970. Missing from this post are Our Song (2000) and Savage Grace (2007), which will be getting full reviews for FilmStruck Friday. On to the films!

(Image via Zanzebek Blog)

The 1989 World Tour Live (2016) – I attended the 1989 Tour when it came to Detroit, so it was fun to relive those memories through this concert film. I enjoyed seeing some of the rehearsal and production process, but would have liked to see even more behind-the-scenes stuff.

(Image via Headline Planet)

Britney Ever After (2017) – It’s a well-known fact on TMP that I love bad movies, but Lord. This one stretches the limits of what can be considered “so bad it’s good,” haha. The performances are awful with the exception of the weirdly accurate Justin Timberlake voice. None of Britney’s actual music is used. The big moment with the umbrella isn’t even reenacted accurately! This movie is a trainwreck that’s hard to look away from but I wouldn’t put it in the Corn Classic category.

(Image via TMML)

Fist Fight (2017) – I tend not to expect much from new release comedies but even so, I was disappointed with this one. The writing is just lazy, relying on far too many jokes about teacher-student relationships and dumb sight gags.

(Image via KinoKoneser)

Moonlight (2016) – By far one of my best new-to-me watches of the month (from any era), and one of my favorite films of 2016. It’s just such a beautifully told story. The film has a wonderful ability to make the viewer feel every ounce of Chiron’s loneliness, self-doubt, and confusion. The performances are fantastic (I particularly loved Ashton Sanders and Trevante Rhodes). The diner scene, and that ending — just perfect. As I said in my February viewing wrap-up, this film absolutely lives up to the hype and if you haven’t yet watched it, it’s a must-see.

(Image via Mid-Day)

The Space Between Us (2017) – Before this film came out, the trailers had everyone calling it “Nicholas Sparks in space.” You all know me — I can’t resist a corny, Sparks-y romance. So I headed to the theater to check this one out. It’s completely unmemorable (I can’t remember the character names or much of what happened, a month after watching) but made for a pleasant time-passer/Valentine-time Sparks fill-in. I doubt I’ll ever have the urge to watch it again, but I don’t regret watching it.

Aside from the wonderful ‘Moonlight,’ February’s moderns were two box office flops, a Lifetime original and an Apple Music exclusive, so… not too surprised they flew under your radar, haha! You aren’t missing much. Giant lizard movies, even when plagued by heartwarming subplots about aspiring singers, are much more worthy of your time.

Post navigation

Search

Search for:

Do you want the movies?

Enter your email address to follow TMP and get brand spankin' new, Cary Grant approved* classic film content sent directly to your inbox every day! (*Cary Grant does not actually endorse this blog, but I'd like to think he does.)